The newly formed Providence Living Tenants Union held its first action on Friday, marching up Wickendon Street to the real estate offices of Providence Living to demand, “increased responsiveness and timeliness from the company, as well as safe and dignified housing for all residents.”

John Vatkevich, a renter at 296 Washington Ave spoke to a crowd of 40 or so people before the march began. After reading a Providence Journal report by Amy Russo, Vatkevich contacted the reporter and said, “no way am I the only person that’s reading this article and experiencing what they’re experiencing.”

Russo’s piece detailed, “no insulation, it talked about holes in the wall, it talked about no heating being provided through frequent maintenance requests,” said Vatkevich. “I can attest to that. I have experienced that.”

Organizing as the Providence Living Tenants Union, at least 22 renters experiencing terrible conditions in apartments throughout Providence created a list of demands. Joined by allies, they marched to the Providence Living offices at 296 Wickendon and taped the demands to the door Providence Living.

“When I had first come to see the apartment it seemed nice,” said Vatkevich. “You want to have good faith in all parties involved. However, once I got the keys and started to talk to the other people in the building I started to be told, basically otherwise.

“You know, mice problems, no responses to requests… I didn’t have a working dishwasher for eight months. I didn’t have hot water in my shower one winter… I reported water damage in April and mushrooms grew out. Literal mushrooms growing out of the ceiling. Not mold, but mushrooms…”

Vatkevich tried to go through the Providence City Government and get inspectors in to make a complaint. “The inspection office publicly stated that they’re understaffed and they’re not able to get in and do what they need to. And on top of that, the fines are only $50… For a company that profits as much as Providence Living, that’s a really small write-off.”

Providence Living is owned by Dustin Dezube, a millionaire landlord with frequent complaints against his business practices. Providence Living, once known as Providence Student Living is responsible for the eviction of the Madonna and Butch Trottier, a low-income family that faced homelessness, hospitalization and death after the company raised their rent and evicted them in 2018. In this piece, Uprise RI took a tour of the Trottier apartment before their eviction. Here’s Madonna Trottier’s obituary.

More video from the protest:

Vatkevich speaks to the crowd outside the offices of Providence Living.

Providence Police tells protesters to stay on the sidewalk and not block traffic.

A woman slows down on Wickendon Street to add her support for renter and tenant justice.

Co-organizer Olivia speaks to the crowd.

Another tenant tells their story: